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Schools and Farmers that Crunch Together, Stay Together

By Andrea Kronbach, SNAP-Ed Educator

In honor of National Farm to School Month in October, schools, preschools, and colleges in six states joined in the Great Lakes Great Apple Crunch, and University of Minnesota Extension was part of the celebration.
The second annual Great Lakes Great Apple Crunch took place at noon local times on October 22 in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio. University of Minnesota Extension partnered with TEAM Academy in Waseca and Johnson Orchard, LLC in Ellendale to host an Apple Crunch in Waseca. Owner Judy Johnson donated over 100 apples from her orchard, located about nine miles from the school, for children and staff to crunch into at noon.

After the crunch, Judy talked with the children about what it means to be an apple farmer. She discussed everything from how to plant the trees to how long it takes to harvest all the apples. I was also there to talk about the concept of farm to school, and I drove home the fact that the food we eat does not have to come from hundreds of miles away — we have farmers who sell their produce right in our own back yards!